DowDuPont announces changes in how it will spin off its businesses

DowDuPont, the company formed through the merger of Dow Chemical Co. and DuPont, announced changes to how it will spin off its businesses following a comprehensive review.

“The changes better align these businesses with the end-markets they serve, ensuring clear focus, market visibility, targeted innovation and stronger growth profiles, and better equip each to compete successfully as industry leaders,”  a company release said.

DowDuPont will realign the following businesses to the Specialty Products Division from the Materials Science Division:

• Dow’s Automotive Systems’ adhesives and fluids platforms
• Dow’s Building Solutions business
• Dow’s Water and Process Solutions business
• Dow’s Pharma and Food Solutions business
• Dow’s Microbial Control business
• DuPont’s Performance Polymers business
• Several silicones-based businesses aligned with applications in industrial LED, semiconductors, medical, as well as Molykote(R) brand lubricants for automotive and industrial equipment and Multibase Inc, which provides solutions for the thermoplastic compounding industry

On a forecasted 2017 basis, these businesses account for total net sales of more than USD8 billion and operating EBITDA of approximately USD2.4 billion, including approximately 40% of the heritage Dow Corning EBITDA.

“Our DowDuPont Board is fully aligned and confident that these targeted portfolio adjustments are the right actions to take and will benefit all stakeholders over the long term,” said Andrew Liveris, executive chairman of DowDuPont. “They bear out the clear results of a significant comprehensive analysis the Dow and DuPont boards undertook over the past many months, which benefited from a fresh look provided by independent, third-party external advisors, in particular McKinsey & Company.”

The specialty products company will be headquartered in Wilmington, Del., U.S.A., and will consist of four market-leading segments:

• Electronics & Imaging, the world’s largest supplier with the broadest set of materials and technologies to solve complex problems for the semiconductor, circuit board, photovoltaic, display and flexographic printing industries that enable the next generation of connectivity and functionality, as well as the convergence of electronic capabilities into everyday life, such as autonomous and electric vehicles.
• Transportation & Advanced Polymers, an industry leader providing high-performance engineering resins, adhesives, lubricants and parts to engineers and designers in the transportation, electronics and medical markets to enable integrated materials solutions for demanding applications and environments.
• Safety & Construction, a global leader and trusted partner with category-leading, proprietary branded products including high-performance fibers and foams, aramid papers, non-woven structures, membranes and filtration technologies and protective garments serving the construction, worker safety, energy, oil & gas, transportation, water purification and medical markets.
• Nutrition & Biosciences, a market leader and technology pioneer collaborating with customers in food, pharma and personal care markets, utilising naturally sourced ingredients and bioscience capabilities, including protein and microbial engineering and industrial-scale fermentation, to create higher performing, healthier and more sustainable offerings (such as probiotics, enzymes, antimicrobial technologies, pharma excipients and biomaterials).